Stupid Question

I was wondering if anyone has ever seen a specific path that the majority of artists who end up showing at such prestigious shows as the Whitney Biennial have taken?

Do the majority of them have an MFA from CalArts, or are they all represented by major international galleries, etc. I know it's a stupid question. As I'm sure all of their paths were different. But there must be some direction or advice on the matter.

I'm really just trying to figure out how to get where I want to go in this over-complicated art world. There doesn't seem to be any specific guide book. Any advice on the matter would be appreciated as I'm sure we all agree showing at the Whitney might as well be the height of one's career. Or maybe that's just how it seems to someone who's still showing at emerging venues.

great. Thanks Kelly. appreciate the input. yeah, it ain't easy. and that was sort of a silly question I think. I wonder if all of the data for all of the artists were put into a formula could anything be derived about how they got chosen to show?

more than anything I thrive off of conversation. and really I've been trying to figure this art thing out for fifteen years now. it's happening slowly. but now I'm seeing artists born in the 80's showing at huge venues and it's starting to take it's toll on me. making me think I'll maybe never get there. i know the definition of there is really relative. but I'm sure you understand. the self-doubt that begins. wondering where I'll be with this in ten years, etc., etc.

thanks Mira. really appreciate it. i've been looking to find a good gallery for some time now. folks barely return emails. it's a miracle if they do. i'm really beginning to believe it's all who you know not the quality of the work. not that my work is rad, or anything, but I've seen what has been showing at very high levels and i know I could show with them. of course that's opinion. so really it's all a mystery to me.

i really wish the art community in general used these social networking sites to help guide artists like myself who are a bit lost in the shuffle. thanks again Mira. looked at your work too. really great work Mira. feel really honored for you to say such kind things about my work.

13-15 years ago I remembered when art students at, Konstfack Sweden, stopped doing art. And started hang out with the right important people. I don’t know if they slept with those men, but I remember the feeling of brown nosing was in the air. Well that havn´t been my game so I tried another path.

Today I still do art shows, some things have been better, some things been worse.
And I thinking of get a decent gallery finally. I havn´t been interested in that until now.
I can see the benefits as I can see the disadvantages.

What ever happened to the brown nosed crowd. Well nothing much. No one became an art star. They are kind of bitter and pathetic today so I avoid them as much as I can.

I think the successful way had been something in between my path and theirs.
You cant stop do art and succeed, but on the other hand you cant turn your back on the art players. And as the talk goes in the Swedish capital, You cant be here in the cold Northern and succeed because no one will care about us out in the periphery.

Pop music and design have put Sweden on the world map, but the feeling is that Swedish art in many ways are ignored.
So of course California, N.Y., London etc is a better place to be if you want to make it big in this part of the art world that we often reference to as the “ART WORLD”..

There is so many art worlds out there, so many scenes that you can be in. Just a fraction of them will be counted and referenced to in the terms of biennial arts.
Just a fraction of them will be in media.

Does that makes you a better or worse artist, being in those reviewed art worlds?.

I think whats bother me today is that its such focus in the artist and his/hes way to Art Stardom (which is puny compared to movie stardom) and not on the works.

When I find an artist to like its always from a work that changes something inside me. Not if he/she is selected as the best, biggest, most valued.

Some artist just get dull after a while. Others like Erwin Wurm, Vanessa Beecroft is a feast to se new work from. What are their next step? I think when I see their works and then they deliver something that makes you like them.

Not all Rothkos painting are good, but many of them are impressive. And thats whats trigger me, when I watch his works.

Today I think it more about the artist being cool, have the looks and attitude. Which in a way reflects the world we live in. So I guess I have to live with it.

yeah. I can imagine. or can I. it must be tough. Yeah this contemporary art thing is the hardest thing if your outside the larger art cities. But when you're in the larger art cities it's hard to break in because there are so many artists. quite a puzzle.

definitely agree with you on persistence.

thank you. appreciate it. yeah, was interested in how you use the tracing paper with oil paints. I bet those are really beautiful in person.

I have heard from an older artist that the first part of an artists career should probably be more about making connections and networking than the actual art. i found that hard to believe then but maybe not so much now. especially after holing myself up like a spider for ten years in a studio making a bunch of work that no one saw, hoping that someone would discover me. well that never happened and now I've thrown all of that work away. it actually was pretty refreshing to throw it all away. i've started working really small now. works on paper. drawings. finding time to make art any time I can. with my 2.5 year old tearing house up when I get home from my day job, and my wife 10 months pregnant, the only time I have to really focus on my art now is in my car during lunchtime. I've been able to crank out quite a few drawings with that time, and now describe my car as my studio. Have I made the connections that I need to make. Not hardly. Have I focused on the work. Yes. Am I anywhere near where I need to be to be a full-time artist and support my family with my work like I do my day job. If homelessness was in the cards maybe.

So really I'm starting to find a few truths in the art world. Correct me if I'm wrong:

*The majority of artists who are full-time artists have a source of income from somewhere other than the sell of their work. Example. Their girlfriends dad is rich.

*Or the artists who are making a living full-time off their work really aren't, and are using that as a sort of status symbol over the ones who aren't?

*Or they actually are making a good living with their work but the work that they are doing is actually more commercial and is produced for marketing to sell.

I hope I'm wrong. But this seems to be the case with many full-time artists I meet.

everything is political though isn't it? either making a choice to go with or against the present political times?

I love to talk shop too, but it'd be great if folks talked openly about how they got where they got. choices to make. who to talk to. like your works great. i like it. you should talk to this gallery.... tell them I told you to call them.

but folks don't seem to do that. they guard their connections like they guard their children. i wish it wasn't like that. sorry but it's so frustrating to me.